Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Review: Nobody But You (Cedar Ridge #3)

After
an overseas mission goes wrong, Army Special Forces officer Jacob Kincaid knows
where he must go to make things right: back home to the tiny town of Cedar
Ridge, Colorado. All he needs to scrub away his painful past is fresh mountain
air, a lakeside cabin, and quiet solitude. But what he discovers is a gorgeous
woman living on a boat at his dock.

Sophie
Marren has nowhere else to go. She’s broke, intermittently seasick, and
fighting a serious attraction to the brooding, dishy, I’m-too-sexy-for-myself
guy who’s now claiming her dock. Something about Jacob’s dark intensity makes
her want to tease—and tempt—him beyond measure. Neither one wants to give any
ground . . . until they realize the only true home they have is with each
other.

Themes: Contemporary

Rating: 4.5 stars

Heat Rating:

Review:

Is it really over? *tear* Fans of Ms. Shalvis
will be sad to know that the Cedar Ridge series has come to an end. I was so hoping for another story but alas it
seems that everything was wrapped up in Sophie and Jacob’s tale of love,
acceptance, and forgiveness. If you have
followed this series, as I have, you were anxious to finally meet the missing
Kincaid sibling, Jacob, and get to know him as he returns to the family
fold. Jacob has been one of those intriguing
characters that we hear about but never get to meet, until this moment. Jacob has returned from war—a wounded
warrior, though his scars seem to be mostly on his heart and soul—and he has to
find a way to find acceptance with his family and, most especially within
himself. What he never expected was to run into Sophie on almost his first day
back in town; she rocks his world and changes him irrevocably from almost that
first meeting. Sophie has been dealing
with a lot of disasters lately and just can’t handle anymore drama, but when
Jacob walks into her life she is impossibly drawn to this sweet and sexy alpha
man. The more she is forced into his
presence the harder it is to resist his draw and soon the fight is over. I loved seeing Jacob and Sophie work through
fears and find a way to have the HEA they each deserved. While Jacob was obviously in need of serious
help with regaining his balance and finding a way to live his life as a
civilian, his love for his family, and eventually Sophie, are the pieces of his
life he really needed to make himself whole.
His determination, sweetness, and willingness to do whatever it takes
for his woman and family make him the perfect hero to me, even though I cried
for him every time he was wracked with guilt over his past. Sophie teaches him that, while having the
forgiveness of others is important, the only way he will truly find peace is by
forgiving himself for the mistakes in his past. Sophie was a whirlwind, the
kind of woman that usually drives me crazy with her neuroses, but she finds her
center with Jacob, even as she tries to keep him out of her heart, and becomes
a better woman for having him in her life.
Accepting the things she cannot change about herself and deciding to
embrace her differences and abilities was the true gift Jacob gave her in their
relationship. These two
needed one another to heal their hearts and in one another they find that one
person that can love them heart and soul, despite their problems or shortcomings.
As always this novel was full of laughter, familial love, and the love of
community, though the love between Jacob and Sophie flares hotly in the beginning, it’s when the fire settles to a soft ember that I truly began to fall for these
characters. I was sad to see the end of
the series, however, I look forward to seeing whatever project comes next for
Jill and will definitely be one of the first in line for whatever is released
next. Another masterful series, Jill, and I can’t wait to see where you take us
next.

*eARC provided by publisher (via
netgalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review. No compensation was provided.